On the social origins of economic divergence: familism, business and state in Greece

Abstract

This article’s main argument is that what is really in question behind the present Greek economic crisis is the social model prevailing from the creation of the Greek nation-state up to the present day. The pre-modern institutional logic of the Greek social model can be depicted in terms of the notion of familism which points to the centrality of the nuclear-extended family and its friendship networks as the dominant locus of trust and moral duty. It is argued that the notion of familism sheds light on business and state relations in Greece: first on the dominant business models (mainly state-dependent and rent-seeking ‘entrepreneurship’), and on the private sector’s calamitous failure to produce the club goods required to enhance its competitiveness. Unsurprisingly, the neoliberal reforms imposed by the ‘Troika’ affected only some symptoms of the familism endemic in Greece. The big question is whether the realisation of a new social contract, combining the positive values of familism with civic culture, is possible in the medium to long run.